3 MUST HAVE ITEMS for Back to School!

Back to school prep can be so stressful! There are so many products available and so much on the market, it can be tough to figure out where to start and what products are the best! I hope these 3 simple tips help you get your kids ready for their first day at school quickly and easily so that you can get back to enjoying your summer.

My oldest son will be going into his second year at school and my youngest is starting pre-k so it’s not the first time (or the last) that I’ll be preparing them for their first big day and lucky for you, if you’re reading this, I can let you in on a few secrets that I’ve learned (mostly through trial and error)!

1. COLLE À MOI SCHOOL LABELS are a MUST. I’ve tried other brands, and nothing compares (I’ve unfortunately had to find out the hard way that not all brands are the same quality when it comes to school labels)! Colle à Moi labels stay stuck and will outlive most of the school supplies you stick them on! They’re dishwasher safe, self-adhesive, washer and dryer safe and are super easy to apply to just about anything (we use them on markers, crayons, pencil cases, shoes, clothes, backpacks, water bottles and more!).

The fun designs will have your kids begging to help you label everything which is a win for me because it means I have helpers to label school supplies. This year I chose the Dino theme for my youngest, since he’s currently in a T-rex obsessed phase and chose the Cool theme for my oldest! Colle à Moi also makes it easy to figure out how many stickers to order thanks to their School Combo packs! It will give you more than enough labels to cover everything you need, but if for some reason you need more, Colle à Moi always offers free shipping in Canada which I obviously love! 

Use code TOVAH10 to save on your order!

2. A LIGHT AND COMFORTABLE BAG is next on my list of must have items for back to school! Kids will come home with snow pants, lunch boxes, water bottles, rocks that they’ve collected and more so the lighter the bag, the better the chance that it will end up on their back instead of dragged behind them on the floor because it’s too heavy. 

My tip is to find a bag that your kids love but that is light weight and can be easily carried. Once you’ve found that bag, don’t forget to label it! Nothing is worse than trying to replace your kid’s favourite bag halfway through the school year when they lose it! We love the Colle à Moi bag tags – they’re a thick durable plastic that can be easily seen in case the bag gets lost and left behind somewhere.

3. DURABLE BENTO BOXES & WATER BOTTLES is the last of my recommendations! I can’t think of any items that get used, thrown, dropped, washed and dried more than my kids’ food containers and water bottles. I generally search for a metal water bottle and have found that they’re much more durable than the plastic ones for my kids so although they can be a bit more expensive, they are worth the investment and with Colle à Moi labels on them, they’ll always find their way home (or to the lost and found) if my kids leave them at school. 

For food containers, I always search for ones that close securely because the last thing any of us want is to open our kid’s bag and to find leaking food all over! A must have feature for me is also being dishwasher safe so that I can easily clean them every day. We always label our food containers for school with Colle à Moi labels because they’re dishwasher safe and I was pleasantly surprised when last school year, every single label was still perfectly stuck by the end of the year!

If your containers come apart (like a thermos), don’t forget to label the top and the bottom!

I hope my tips help you feel better prepared for back-to-school prep and guide you in the right direction! You can use my code TOVAH10 to save on your order at Colle à Moi!

If you have any other tips that you think I should add, leave your suggestions in the comments! 

5 Awesome Crafts for Kids Using Dixie® Cups!

Thank you Dixie® Cups for sponsoring this post. Check out how versatile these 5 oz. multi-purpose cups are!

Thank you Dixie® Cups for sponsoring this post. Check out how versatile these 5 oz. multi-purpose cups are!

With the kids home more often, so many parents are looking for ways to keep their kids entertained and busy! I’m sharing 5 fun arts & crafts activities that you can easily do with kids using Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups! We always have them in our home and I love how versatile they are. We use them as snack cups for the kids, water cups while we’re at the park, we make popsicles with them in the summer, and they can also be used for arts & crafts! They’re an easy way to prevent the spread of germs and, especially now, that’s definitely a priority for every parent! 

They’re designed to last and perform, which comes as no surprise since they’ve been around for over 100 years, so they’re the perfect cup to use with kids! They’ll hold their shape, are the perfect size for their hands, they easily stack inside of each other to pack on-the-go, they won’t break when your toddler drops them on the floor, and they come in the most stylish colors and patterns!

I rounded up our 5 favorite crafts for kids using Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups that will promote fine motor skills, dexterity, counting, letter recognition, and more! 

Counting Caterpillar

What you’ll need: 

• Pipe cleaner for the antennas

• Eyes and a nose, or markers to draw them on

• Long piece of string

Start by making the face of your caterpillar on a Dixie® cup with markers or pompoms, or any other items you have! With a pair of scissors, make 2 holes on the top and loop the antenna pipe cleaner through! Take a piece of tape and secure the thread inside the caterpillar’s head.

Now for the body! Take a marker and draw a number on the side of each Dixie® cup. We did numbers 1-10, but if your child is older, you can add more! With a pair of scissors, pierce a hole in the bottom of each Dixie® cup.

My son is only 3, so I did a lot of the prep work myself, but if your child is older, they can help write out the numbers and make the face on the caterpillar!

Now, it’s time for your child to practice their numbers! Give them the caterpillar’s head and string and ask them to add the cups in order, starting at #1, by pulling the string through the hole on the bottom of each Dixie® cup! This is an activity you can do over and over again. When they finish adding all the cups to the caterpillar’s body, you can take them off and store them away for another day.

Classic Telephone

This is one that I’m sure you all remember from when you were younger! Your kids will love decorating the cup and will be amazed that they can hear your voice through the Dixie® cup.

What you’ll need: 

• 2 Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups

• A long piece of string

• Art supplies to decorate the Dixie® cups

• Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups

Decorate your Dixie® cups to start. Pierce a hole in the bottom of each cup and insert your string through the hole and knot it so it won’t slip out. That’s it!

Music Shaker

What you’ll need: 

• 2 Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups

• Uncooked macaroni or penne

• Tape

• Art supplies to decorate the Dixie® cups

Decorate both cups with the art supplies that you have! Fill up one cup halfway with the uncooked macaroni. You can turn this into a counting game by asking your child to count how many they are putting in. 

Tape another cup on top of the one with the macaroni and make sure they are well secured together. 

Add some final decor to your shaker and you’re ready to dance!

Flower Pot

This craft is great for dexterity and fine motor skills. It seems like such a simple craft, but it will keep your kids busy and entertained! 

What you’ll need: 

• Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups

• Pipe cleaners

• Art supplies to decorate the Dixie® cups

Start by making holes in the Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups with scissors or with a hole punch. You can do them only along the rim or all over the cup. 

Decorate the Dixie® cup and then ask your child to take the pipe cleaners and weave them in and out of the holes that you made on the cup. This is a really great activity that will have them concentrating and practicing so many different skills. Once they’ve finished, you can make some flowers with pipe cleaners, or you can go outside and pick some real ones!

Alphabet Tower

What you’ll need: 

• Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups

• Markers or paint for the letters

Start by asking your child to draw or paint a letter on each of the Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups. If they’re too young to write, then you can draw the letter! You can also decorate the cups if you’d like, but I find them so nice looking as is!

Next is the fun part. Build a tower, build a fort, or stack them one on top of the other — as long as they’re doing it in the order of the alphabet! This is a great way to make practicing the alphabet fun. You can do it with upper or lowercase letters, or a mix of both. 

I hope your children love these crafts as much as mine do! We always make sure to have Dixie® multi-purpose 5 oz. cups at home for all our daily needs! Whether you’re doing a craft or using it to give snacks to your kids, they’re a simple and easy way to prevent germs from spreading so you can focus more on your family and worry less about keeping them safe. They will really give you peace of mind, which is something that we could all use a little more of. 

Ricky Zoom and His Friends Make Chores FUN!

This post was sponsored by eOne but all opinions, as always, are my own.

Just in time for National Clean Your Room Day, on May 10th, which also happens to be Mother’s Day, get your kids to start helping out around the house with a smile on their face thanks to Ricky Zoom’s chore chart!

If you haven’t heard of Ricky Zoom, then you can thank me after your kids fall in love with the show and start learning about teamwork, responsibility, friendship, community and helping others – all the core elements of Ricky Zoom! You can watch Ricky Zoom on Nick Jr - http://www.nickjr.com/ricky-zoom/ and catch all-new episodes May 18 to May 29th, from Monday to Friday at 5pm.

The Ricky Zoom chore chart is much different than the ones we’ve seen in the past. For starters, you can print it out at home and customize it or you can use one of their pre-colored ones. Because they’re easy to print and double as an arts & crafts activity, we printed a few and put them all over our home. In the basement, for example, we put up a Ricky Zoom chore chart that included: Put away your cars, turn off your iPad and wash your hands. In Zane’s room we have: make your bed, brush your teeth and put away your books.

Click here to download the Ricky Zoom chore chart!

The Ricky Zoom chore chart comes with some chore recommendations but also comes with blank tags so you can write in your own. We’re trying to teach our older son, Zane, to share with his younger brother so although “sharing” isn’t really a chore, we put it on the chart to remind him that it’s important and to encourage him to do it. My son is 3 years old and extremely motivated by reward, so we’ve found that having this chore chart has really made him enjoy helping out! He loves feeling grown up, he loves the praise that we give him when he’s completed a chore and he loves sticking the lightening bolts on the chart when he’s completed a chore!

For kids that are a little older, you can use the blank tags as a way to encourage them to make the decision about what chores they’ll do every week. And because it’s a printable, you can switch up the chores too every once and a while to keep things exciting!

I love Ricky Zoom for my kids because the show teaches him such important life lessons and values and with my son being out of school until at least September, I want to make sure he doesn’t forget all the valuable lessons that he’s learned at school about playing and sharing with others. Because of Ricky Zoom’s chore chart, my son feels like one of his bike buddies every time he finishes a chore and so it’s helped make the average boring chore (such a putting away his sippy cup) super exciting! Ricky Zoom offers so many amazing fun activities for your kids on their site such as toys, apps and free printables! Head to Rickyzoom.com to check them all out. 

7 Toys Under $30 from Amazon!

Buying your children educational, good quality and fun toys doesn’t have to break the bank with Kidzlane! The holidays are expensive enough, between holiday outfits, the food, the cost of travel - don’t make toys one of them! I’ve rounded up a bunch of my faves that will have your child smiling from ear to ear without you needing to spend hundreds of dollars! And the added bonus - most of them can be shipped Amazon Prime!

Magnetic Fishing Game for Kids (ages +3)

This game is fun, simple and a classic. The inside of the box becomes an underwater adventure and your child gets to practice hand-eye coordination, colors, numbers and matching! This is definitely a toy can can grow with your child as they learn more and more.

Kidzlane only uses high-quality wood and non-toxic paint. This toy is sure to please a toddler on your list and at $12.99, how can you not smile about it too?

Click here to shop

Wooden Building Blocks (Construction & City) (ages +3)

This will be a favorite in your home, I can promise you that! We got Zane the Construction Site Building Blocks and the Wooden City Building Blocks! He spends hours building a little city and playing pretend school bus driver and dump truck driver! These pieces from Kidzlane are made from durable high-quality wood with non-toxic, BPA and lead-free paint and come with adorable containers to store the pieces in when they aren’t being used. I am obsessed with not only the quality of these blocks, but the detail on them as well! The cement truck spins, the dump truck can dump, the wheels turn - it’s never ending imaginative play that helps your kids develop motor skills, coordination and confidence while learning about colors and shapes! For $24.99, it’s a STEAL!

Click here for the Wooden City Building Blocks

Click here for the Construction Site Building Blocks

Gear Head Wooden Building Toys (ages +18 months)

My love for wooden toys and Kidzlane continues! This is an amazing gift for preschoolers and toddlers 18 months +. It will encourage them to use their imagination, to learn design, STEM engineering and there are so many different ways to assemble it, they won’t get bored. The colors are bright and vibrant and it’s made with real wood! I was surprised to see a price tag of only $16.99 on this!

Click here to shop!

Kids Doctor Kit with Electronic Stethoscope

Does anyone else have a child that loves to play pretend? This Doctor Kit from Kidzlane takes pretend to the next level! With Electronic Stethoscopes and a thermometer with moving numbers, your children will get lost in a world of imaginative play! For only $23.99, watch you child laugh and be entertained with a cell phone that beeps and a stethoscope that makes a real-life heartbeat and coughing sound! And don’t worry - the pieces are easy to clean and store away in a convenient little briefcase!

Click here to shop!

Pretend Veterinarian Doctor Kit (ages +3)

The perfect gift for the animal loving child is here! It’s a 17 piece veterinarian kit from Kidzlane that includes a plush dog, carrier, phone, clip board, dog house, exam table, stethoscope, glasses and more! This is one of the cutest sets I have seen after playing with this, my son keeps chasing my dog around trying to take care of him too! For $29.99 you won’t regret getting your hands on this!

Click here to shop!

Binoculars for Kids (ages +6)

This is the ultimate stocking stuffer! It’s priced at $16.99 and can be used all year round: Adjustable Binoculars! Your outdoor loving child will love taking this to the park and playing outside with it in the summer and your indoor loving imaginative child will love using it in your home to play pretend. It’s perfect for so many different age groups and can be used at sports games, on road trips and even on vacation! It has rubber around the eye cups to protect your child’s eyes and it was designed with your child’s size hands in mind. They’ll be able to adjust the focus and hold it perfectly! The best part? It’s damage resistant and comes with a carrying case so your little explorer will be able to continue enjoying it day after day!

Click here to shop and to see other toys from Kidzlane!

Sorting & Matching Educational Egg Toy (ages +18 months)

The cutest gift in the funnest packaging! It looks like an egg carton filled with plastic eggs, but when you open it, the eggs come apart and it becomes an educational matching game that teaches your children about colors and shapes. The eggs are the perfect size for their little hands (but large enough to not be a choking hazard) and it doubles as pretend food for playing groceries! It’s priced at $17.99 so it’s perfect for any toddler on your list!

Click here to shop!

Bonus!

Floor Piano Mat: Jumbo 6 Foot Musical Keyboard

So this one didn’t fit the Under $30 list, but it is honestly the coolest gift I’ve seen in a while so I had to include it! It’s a new release from Kidzlane and it will get your kids moving and singing! It’s a perfect gift to help them get out all their energy during the cold months when they’re often stuck inside and it will be a favorite in your home for years to come! It’s a 6 foot long piano mat with touch-sensitive keys and 8 different instrumental sounds that they’ll be able to skip and hop on! It includes 10 classical songs and comes with cards that can teach your kids how to play the songs! Is there anything better? They’re learning music, being active and having fun. It’s made from toxin-free material that can easily be wiped clean and is durable enough to withstand all the fun your kids will have with it! It’s $49.99, so VERY reasonably priced and I guarantee you will have as much fun playing on it as your kids will!

Click here to shop!

7 Toys Under $30 from Amazon!

Buying your children educational, good quality and fun toys doesn’t have to break the bank with Kidzlane! The holidays are expensive enough, between holiday outfits, the food, the cost of travel - don’t make toys one of them! I’ve rounded up a bunch of my faves that will have your child smiling from ear to ear without you needing to spend hundreds of dollars! And the added bonus - most of them can be shipped Amazon Prime!

Magnetic Fishing Game for Kids (ages +3)

This game is fun, simple and a classic. The inside of the box becomes an underwater adventure and your child gets to practice hand-eye coordination, colors, numbers and matching! This is definitely a toy can can grow with your child as they learn more and more.

Kidzlane only uses high-quality wood and non-toxic paint. This toy is sure to please a toddler on your list and at $12.99, how can you not smile about it too?

Click here to shop

Wooden Building Blocks (Construction & City) (ages +3)

This will be a favorite in your home, I can promise you that! We got Zane the Construction Site Building Blocks and the Wooden City Building Blocks! He spends hours building a little city and playing pretend school bus driver and dump truck driver! These pieces from Kidzlane are made from durable high-quality wood with non-toxic, BPA and lead-free paint and come with adorable containers to store the pieces in when they aren’t being used. I am obsessed with not only the quality of these blocks, but the detail on them as well! The cement truck spins, the dump truck can dump, the wheels turn - it’s never ending imaginative play that helps your kids develop motor skills, coordination and confidence while learning about colors and shapes! For $24.99, it’s a STEAL!

Click here for the Wooden City Building Blocks

Click here for the Construction Site Building Blocks

Gear Head Wooden Building Toys (ages +18 months)

My love for wooden toys and Kidzlane continues! This is an amazing gift for preschoolers and toddlers 18 months +. It will encourage them to use their imagination, to learn design, STEM engineering and there are so many different ways to assemble it, they won’t get bored. The colors are bright and vibrant and it’s made with real wood! I was surprised to see a price tag of only $16.99 on this!

Click here to shop!

Kids Doctor Kit with Electronic Stethoscope

Does anyone else have a child that loves to play pretend? This Doctor Kit from Kidzlane takes pretend to the next level! With Electronic Stethoscopes and a thermometer with moving numbers, your children will get lost in a world of imaginative play! For only $23.99, watch you child laugh and be entertained with a cell phone that beeps and a stethoscope that makes a real-life heartbeat and coughing sound! And don’t worry - the pieces are easy to clean and store away in a convenient little briefcase!

Click here to shop!

Pretend Veterinarian Doctor Kit (ages +3)

The perfect gift for the animal loving child is here! It’s a 17 piece veterinarian kit from Kidzlane that includes a plush dog, carrier, phone, clip board, dog house, exam table, stethoscope, glasses and more! This is one of the cutest sets I have seen after playing with this, my son keeps chasing my dog around trying to take care of him too! For $29.99 you won’t regret getting your hands on this!

Click here to shop!

Binoculars for Kids (ages +6)

This is the ultimate stocking stuffer! It’s priced at $16.99 and can be used all year round: Adjustable Binoculars! Your outdoor loving child will love taking this to the park and playing outside with it in the summer and your indoor loving imaginative child will love using it in your home to play pretend. It’s perfect for so many different age groups and can be used at sports games, on road trips and even on vacation! It has rubber around the eye cups to protect your child’s eyes and it was designed with your child’s size hands in mind. They’ll be able to adjust the focus and hold it perfectly! The best part? It’s damage resistant and comes with a carrying case so your little explorer will be able to continue enjoying it day after day!

Click here to shop and to see other toys from Kidzlane!

Sorting & Matching Educational Egg Toy (ages +18 months)

The cutest gift in the funnest packaging! It looks like an egg carton filled with plastic eggs, but when you open it, the eggs come apart and it becomes an educational matching game that teaches your children about colors and shapes. The eggs are the perfect size for their little hands (but large enough to not be a choking hazard) and it doubles as pretend food for playing groceries! It’s priced at $17.99 so it’s perfect for any toddler on your list!

Click here to shop!

Bonus!

Floor Piano Mat: Jumbo 6 Foot Musical Keyboard

So this one didn’t fit the Under $30 list, but it is honestly the coolest gift I’ve seen in a while so I had to include it! It’s a new release from Kidzlane and it will get your kids moving and singing! It’s a perfect gift to help them get out all their energy during the cold months when they’re often stuck inside and it will be a favorite in your home for years to come! It’s a 6 foot long piano mat with touch-sensitive keys and 8 different instrumental sounds that they’ll be able to skip and hop on! It includes 10 classical songs and comes with cards that can teach your kids how to play the songs! Is there anything better? They’re learning music, being active and having fun. It’s made from toxin-free material that can easily be wiped clean and is durable enough to withstand all the fun your kids will have with it! It’s $49.99, so VERY reasonably priced and I guarantee you will have as much fun playing on it as your kids will!

Click here to shop!

My Necessary Hospital Bag Essential

This blog is sponsored by AfterShokz and PTPA Media. As always, all opinions and views that I have expressed are my own.

They say that as a second time mom, everything seems to go a bit more smoothly. You’ve learned from your mistakes the first time around, you know what to expect and you know exactly what you need. This is absolutely true when it comes to hospital bag essentials! The first time around, I packed everything but the kitchen sink. I could have literally lived at the hospital for months with what I packed, but there were deffinitly some items I overlooked and I won’t make the same mistake twice! Curious what my unexpected hospital bag essential is? AfterShokz Trekz Air wireless headphones! Let me tell you why: They use bone conduction technology so you can listen to your music while still being able to hear exactly what is happening around you.

This means, you can play whatever music you want during labour and you’ll still be able to hear instructions from your doctor or midwife while also being able to drift off into your zone and find the strength to get through labour! I wish I could have had some awesome music blasting while delivering Zane! It definitely would have helped me relax and focus on pushing instead of everything that was happening around me.

After labour, what better way to relax than to drown out the sounds of the typical hospital environment with your fave beats, but still be able to hear your new little baby cry when they’re hungry or have a dirty diaper? The wireless headphones mean you won’t be tangled in cords or risk getting one wrapped around your baby, so there’s no need to remove them, even while breastfeeding or changing diapers!

Finally, because they boast dual noise canceling microphones which exclude surrounding noise, you can answer all your congratulatory phone calls from family and friends without missing a beat or worrying about them not being able to hear you! With a baby in one arm and an IV in the other, it wasn’t easy holding a phone up to my ear after my son was born to talk to all my friends, but with AfterShokz Trekz Air wireless headphones, I don’t have to worry about that this time around!

They’re so practical for mom life and you’ll find use for them even when you’re home with your new baby! Breastfeeding can be tough and somewhat isolating - especially at night. You don’t want to start turning on the TV because it will stimulate your newborn, so often you’re in a quiet dim and dark room for the better part of every night. With AfterShokz Trekz Air wireless headphones, you can bring along your favourite podcast, meditate or listen to your favourite song without disturbing your feeding newborn. Because they’re wireless, cords won’t be an issue and you can have both hands free to cuddle and nurse.

I know that the AfterShokz Trekz Air wireless headphones will be a lifesaver during my hospital stay this time and I’m so thankful that I discovered them in time for my delivery! Be prepared to see them in a lot of my hospital pictures!

If you want more information on these must-have wireless bone conduction headphones, CLICK HERE. They make a great gift for anyone in your life and an even better gift for yourself :).

Start Your Holiday Shopping With Funrise Toys!

With the holiday season just around the corner… I’ve decided to help you all out by rounding up some awesome gifts well before the madness of shopping begins so you can get a head start on your shopping!

Zane is almost 2 years old so he’s at an age where I buy him a cool and fun toy and he ends up being more interested in the box (parent reality). So I’m always pleasantly surprised when I find a toy that catches his attention and that becomes a favourite of his! I couldn’t wait to share with you Zane’s current obsessions (which I know your minis will LOVE too!). He lives, breathes, eats and would sleep (if I let him) with these toys!

HERODRIVE™ DC Super Friends Collection and TONKA Power Movers.

They are sturdy (Zane-proof) toys that light up, move and have his imagination running wild. He can pretend to be Batman as he zooms around the house with his bat mobile! It features lights, engine sounds, and music that bring the action to life! The Batmobile transforms into race mode by pushing the windshield forward to make the wings pop out. Zane can push the logo on the hood for unique Batman sounds, then push it again to send the Batman Racer racing forward with its cape flying behind!

Zane can also be the master of a construction site with his new dump truck that has lights, real engine sounds and even a realistic backup sound! The rugged Dump Truck features new Motion Drive Technology allowing for fun and intuitive play that brings the action to life!

They’re fun to play with, they were easy for him to figure out how to use and they are big enough that they don’t fit under my couch (mom win)!!!!

You can check out the whole HERODRIVE™ DC Super Friends Collection here.

And the TONKA Power Movers here.

Make sure to tag me in the pics of your minis playing with their new toys! There’s nothing better than a smiling, happy and entertained toddler.

Start Your Holiday Shopping With Funrise Toys!

With the holiday season just around the corner… I’ve decided to help you all out by rounding up some awesome gifts well before the madness of shopping begins so you can get a head start on your shopping!

Zane is almost 2 years old so he’s at an age where I buy him a cool and fun toy and he ends up being more interested in the box (parent reality). So I’m always pleasantly surprised when I find a toy that catches his attention and that becomes a favourite of his! I couldn’t wait to share with you Zane’s current obsessions (which I know your minis will LOVE too!). He lives, breathes, eats and would sleep (if I let him) with these toys!

HERODRIVE™ DC Super Friends Collection and TONKA Power Movers.

They are sturdy (Zane-proof) toys that light up, move and have his imagination running wild. He can pretend to be Batman as he zooms around the house with his bat mobile! It features lights, engine sounds, and music that bring the action to life! The Batmobile transforms into race mode by pushing the windshield forward to make the wings pop out. Zane can push the logo on the hood for unique Batman sounds, then push it again to send the Batman Racer racing forward with its cape flying behind!

Zane can also be the master of a construction site with his new dump truck that has lights, real engine sounds and even a realistic backup sound! The rugged Dump Truck features new Motion Drive Technology allowing for fun and intuitive play that brings the action to life!

They’re fun to play with, they were easy for him to figure out how to use and they are big enough that they don’t fit under my couch (mom win)!!!!

You can check out the whole HERODRIVE™ DC Super Friends Collection here.

And the TONKA Power Movers here.

Make sure to tag me in the pics of your minis playing with their new toys! There’s nothing better than a smiling, happy and entertained toddler.

Ripley's Aquarium - Fun for the Whole Family

If you're in the Toronto area, Ripley's Aquarium is a MUST SEE attraction. I wasn't sure what to expect and went in just hoping that I could keep Zane entertained for a few hours. It turned out, we could have spent the entire day there!

From the second you walk in the Ripley's Aquarium, you're surrounded by gorgeous colours, illuminated aquariums that span from floor to ceiling and EVERY type of underwater fish you can imagine. It was such a nice experience to see Zane fascinated by the lights and swimming fish. I went with a friend of mine who has 2 older children and they were just as enthralled by the breath taking views.

The aquarium is divided into exhibits such as the Canadian Waters, Rainbow Reef, Ray Bay and Curious Creatures (to name a few) but besides the exhibits, they have so many other things to offer! They have interactive stops along the way for older kids, they have caves that kids can crawl though, educational games and puzzles, and there was even a teaching session happening where someone from the Ripley's Aquarium was giving a lesson about fish!

We had 2 favourite parts of the aquarium. The first was the Dangerous Lagoon - which is a long and beautiful aquarium tunnel that allows you to walk under swimming fish, sharks, sea turtles and so much more! There is moving belt so you can relax and be transported on what feels like a magical underwater journey.

Our second favourite was in the Planet Jellies exhibit. There was this HUGE wall filled with what seemed like hundreds of jelly fish. As the wall changed colours, so did the jelly fish! It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen!

We had such a blast at the Aquarium and I can't wait to go back with Zane the next time we are in Toronto. It's a place we could visit over and over again and always find something else to love.

A sleeping baby means a happy mama!!! This is the the right place to tire out your mini :)